Judge keeps Zephyr Teachout on ballot

ALBANY – A state Supreme Court judge on Monday rejected an attempt by Gov. Andrew Cuomo's campaign to toss his Democratic primary opponent from the ballot.

In a two-day trial in Brooklyn last week, Cuomo supporters challenged whether Fordham Law Professor Zephyr Teachout has been a resident of New York long enough to run for governor, pointing to strong ties she maintains with her native state of Vermont.

The argument, however, wasn't persuasive to Supreme Court Justice Edgar Walker, who ruled Monday that Teachout had maintained a permanent residence in New York City since she was hired at Fordham in 2009.

The state Constitution requires candidates for governor to have been a "resident of this state" for five years preceding an election.

"While the evidence also shows that Ms. Teachout maintains a strong connection with Vermont, the evidence relating to the Vermont connection is insufficient to show that she never formed an intent to make New York her primary residence," Walker wrote in a 12-page decision.

The decision means Teachout will be able to continue with her primary challenge, though Cuomo's election attorney Martin Connor vowed to appeal the ruling. Political activist and comedian Randy Credico will also appear on the ballot for the Sept. 9 primary.

"Today we beat the governor and his old-boys club in court," Teachout said in a statement. "His two attempts to knock me off the ballot have failed -- first by challenging my petition signatures, and second by challenging my residency."

Teachout has been waging a primary challenge to Cuomo since June, after the Working Families Party chose to endorse Cuomo over her as part of a last-minute deal in late May that saw the governor back full Democratic control of the state Senate.

Last month, Connor filed a challenge to Teachout's residency, pointing to a Vermont driver's license she held until May and a political donation she made in 2012 that listed a Vermont address.

But Walker cited the testimony of two of Teachout's friends, rent checks, tax returns and emails showing the Fordham professor maintained a permanent residence in New York.

In a statement, Connor cited Teachout's testimony surrounding a 2009 tax return, in which she originally marked spending zero months in New York City but amended it to say six. Teachout said she made a mistake on the filing.

"As the judge himself noted in his decision, Ms. Teachout admitted under oath that she misrepresented her address on official and tax documents," said Connor, the former minority leader of the state Senate. "Will Ms. Teachout be paying the taxes owed to the State of New York? We will be appealing today's decision."